by Eric D. Lawrence, Robert Allen and Gina Damron, Detroit Free Press

by Eric D. Lawrence, Robert Allen and Gina Damron, Detroit Free Press

DETROIT -- The man accused of gunning down a 2-year-old girl wanted her killing to be the last thing her father ever saw, a Michigan State Police spokesman said Thursday.

The allegation from Lt. Michael Shaw followed the arraignment of 24-year-old Raymone Bernard Jackson of Inkster on first-degree murder, torture and other charges.

Authorities said Jackson, who is known as Money, shot Kamiya French in the head before opening fire Tuesday at an Inkster housing complex, wounding her father, 34-year-old Kenneth French, and family friend Chelsea Lancaster, 12, both of whom remain hospitalized.

State Police said they arrested two more people Thursday that were involved in the shooting. The names of the pair have not been released.

Jackson entered the courtroom in Inkster quietly Thursday afternoon. Judge Sabrina Johnson asked for a court-appointed attorney to be assigned and ordered Jackson held without bail. The next hearing is scheduled for July 16.

During a news conference after the arraignment, Shaw said made clear how State Police intend to treat alleged child killers.

"The first coward's in custody. Anybody that feels that they can execute a child in the state of Michigan, we're going to go after them with everything that we can," he said.

Inkster's police chief, Hilton Napoleon, said earlier that the attack was retaliation for a shooting in April at an after-hours club in Inkster.

Shaw, however, offered his own take.

"I wouldn't call it retaliation. Retaliation for what? Take somebody's life away for retaliation? I mean, just to mention that as part of a motive is silliness to me," he said. "I can't wrap my head around anything that would make me want to walk up to a small child sitting next to a porch, point a pistol at their head, and shoot them dead. I can't give you a motive. I can't wrap my head around that."

Court records indicate that Jackson has had a handful of cases in Wayne County. Records indicate that in March 2010, a jury found him not guilty of first-degree murder stemming from a 2009 incident.

In April 2010, Jackson pleaded guilty to a drug charge and, in May that year, was sentenced to two to five years in prison, records indicate. On the Michigan Department of Corrections online offender system, he is listed under the name "Raymond Bernard Jackson."

Russ Marlan, a corrections spokesman, said Jackson was paroled on June 28, 2011.

Last year, Jackson pleaded guilty to a drug charge stemming from January 2013. He pleaded guilty in August 2013 and, under a plea agreement, two other charges, including failure to stop after a collision, were dismissed. In September, he was sentenced to 11 months in jail and two years of probation.

Marlan said Jackson was discharged from parole on the 2010 case last month and was transferred to probation.

On Wednesday, a warrant was issued for Jackson for violating probation on the 2013 case.

Chelsea, who was injured in the triple shooting, was reported by her grandfather to be awake and talking after surgery to remove bullets from her stomach area and upper left leg.

She's doing "pretty good," Darrell Holt Sr., 56, of Inkster said. "She's going to make a 100% recovery, but it's just going to take time."

But the trauma of the shooting remains fresh in Chelsea's mind.

"She's asking, 'Why did it happen and what's wrong with the people of the world?' She's asking her mom, 'Why are people so silly like this?' " Holt said.

Holt also called Kamiya's father, Kenneth French, a "good guy" who always had Kamiya with him. He was in stable condition late this morning, police said.

Authorities said the three were shot at the Parkside Estates housing complex at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. The suspect was arrested Wednesday in Brownstown Township, according to Napoleon.

State Police said the shooter approached the group outside an apartment at the complex and started talking to French. He pulled out a handgun and shot Kamiya in the head before opening fire on the others, police said.

Andy Anderson, 51, of Detroit said that he saw the suspect shoot Kamiya at "point-blank" range.